Here are the essentials in a clear, numbered checklist you can use on your farm and in your paperwork:
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Use a compliant energiser that meets the current British Standard for electric fence safety, and keep the declaration of conformity and instructions with your records.
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Never connect a fence directly to the mains supply. Power only through a purpose-designed energiser and protect any mains circuit with a residual current device.
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Build a robust earth system in permanently moist ground. Drive galvanised rods deep, add extra rods in dry soils, and keep the energiser earth well away from any other electrical earths or services.
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Do not chain multiple energisers together or modify outputs. Safe pulse energy, pulse length and pulse rate are set by the standard and must not be defeated.
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Plan the route on a map before you start. Mark public paths, gates, water points, overhead lines, buildings and likely stock movements, then walk it on foot.
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Keep live conductors well back from gates, stiles and natural stopping points. A person should be able to open and pass through a gate without any chance of contact.
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Provide safe crossings. Take live feeds underground in robust conduit or overhead on strong supports at a confident height.
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Install clear, durable warning plates at the start and end of each run and at frequent intervals where the public might approach. Keep plates visible above vegetation year round.
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Use visible tape or rope wherever horses are present or bridleways are nearby. Give riders generous space at gates and corners and keep live conductors out of the natural arc of movement.
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Never electrify barbed wire or razor wire. If barbed wire is already in place, mount a separate live line on stand offs so people and animals cannot be pressed into sharp edges.
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Choose conductors to suit purpose and species: high tensile wire for permanent cattle and sheep lines; visible tape or rope for equine areas; species-appropriate heights for wildlife control.
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Use proper insulators and fit them straight and secure. Replace any that are cracked, weathered or tracking, and avoid sharp edges or crushed conductor points.
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Use double-insulated lead out cable rated for fence voltages. Protect underground runs against tyres and water, and keep overhead runs high and well supported to prevent sag.
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Treat overhead power lines as a primary constraint. Avoid them where possible; if a crossing is unavoidable, plan it at right angles, control long wire at all times and change the method if wind rises.
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Fit lightning diverters and give them a separate lightning earth, spaced well away from the energiser earth. Test after storms and replace sacrificial parts that have done their job.
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Manage vegetation along the line so contact does not bleed energy and create irregular shocks that encourage testing by animals.
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Inspect routinely in every season. After storms remove branches, re-tension loose tape or wire, replace damaged insulators and check that signs remain visible.
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Test the fence voltage at known points and learn what “healthy” looks like on your site so you can spot change early.
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Keep simple, reliable records: energiser paperwork, a plan showing the route, earths and sign positions, plus dated inspection and maintenance notes.
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Engage early with the local rights of way team if a route runs beside or across a public path, and agree safe set backs or authorised crossings in writing.
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Brief neighbours where lines pass close to gardens, driveways or sensitive equipment, and adjust the route or earthing if it prevents nuisance or concern.
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Train staff and volunteers in a short, written method: isolating the energiser, safe testing, work near overhead lines and what to do if conditions change. Record that training.
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Prepare a calm incident plan: who isolates the fence, who calls for help, how to document conditions with photos, and how to review and remedy root causes.
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Design for animal welfare. Keep boundaries predictable and visible, remove entanglement risks, and maintain consistent, brief deterrent pulses rather than irregular shocks.
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Check planning rules if a boundary is near a highway or in a residential setting, and document any advice received.
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Use the pillar page to embed internal links to energisers, conductors, insulators, warning plates, testers, earth rods and lightning protection, and keep product links up to date each spring.
If you follow these twenty-six points as your house standard, you will protect people and animals, reduce complaints, satisfy insurers and regulators, and create a fence system that works quietly and reliably year after year.